First I must admit that I am not a biker. I have a bike licence but I have not riden for about forty years.
I live directly on the seafront and regularly the town is visited by large groups of bikes, sometimes numbering in the hundreds. I have noticed that many of them (mostly Harleys) appear to have no silencers of any kind, and although I don't object to the occasional loud bike it can get a bit annoying when a very large group keep passing over the span of a couple of hours.
My questions are these: What is the noise limit for bikes? Were these bikes originally fitted with silencers, and have the silencers been romoved subsequent to the bike passing its last MOT? If so, is the MOT still valid?
Morganeer
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It might have something to do with the lack of traffic police these days.
I have a bike that can do 155mph - I am grown-up enough to see that as sufficient.
I see and hear riders of much more powerful bikes sticking racing cans on them.
Why? Most of them never leave town anyway.
With Hardly-Ablesons it is all part of the image - sorry Harleyman - most of them are weekend bikers who want to look and sound the part - or should that be prat?
Having said that, it is all to do with noise - what would you prefer - a Harley passing by at 1200rpm or a 50cc 2-stroke doing the same speed at 7000rpm?
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What's the noise limit for bikes ? - there is no effective limit for public use.
Most racetracks impose noise limits on bikes wishing to use the track and this will limit a few of the sports-bike users. Some bikers think they need a loud bike so other road users will hear them, and therefore avoid them; I think they need to ride more considerately.
Personally, I would like to see much tighter control of all road noise. Some of the MotoGP teams are now producing much quieter bikes as these can be easier on the rider.
One or two Harleys, Ducatis - even Hyabusas on a full Akrapovic system - sound lovely. En masse, they're horrible - as anyone living near a 'nice' roundabout, a set of bends, a national park, or a coastal town will know only too well.
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I have a bike that has louder exhausts fitted on it...by me...because:
1, on a tour of Spain a couple of years ago, in a group of 12 people with various abilities, i found that some riders weren't overly competent at looking behind them or using their mirrors. It meant that if I fancied going past them it could be a bit of a lottery and you had to choose your moment carefully, which i didn't like. Now if out on a run with others or you catch other bikes up, I can change down a gear too much, make it rev a little and they can hear me...much safer. The rider in front's disposition would change completely, you could see them react, wondering where the other bike was.
2, When filtering in very heavy traffic, some car drivers are a nightmare and will make a sudden lunge for another lane. If you're approaching someone who has the potential (you can often spot likely contenders) rather than use the horn, which some take to be agressive...i'll blip the throttle. Again you can often see a change and the driver look in the mirror.
The cans aren't super loud, which i'd agree is anti-social...but when revved they are noticeably louder than the standard ones. The bike itself is naturally quiet (Honda Blackbird).... indeed on the Spanish trip it was nicknamed 'The Stealth Bomber'. When riding it without revs, which with a bike like that can be most of the time, you wouldn't really know it had aftermarket cans on it, it's only when you rev it.
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With Hardly-Ablesons it is all part of the image - sorry Harleyman - most of them are weekend bikers who want to look and sound the part - >>
Having said that it is all to do with noise - what would you prefer- a Harley passing by at 1200rpm or a 50cc 2-stroke doing the same speed at 7000rpm?
No offence taken, but you should be aware that due to the prehistoric design of the Harley-Davidson V-twin, the standard exhaust system (built to conform with Californian laws) is so restrictive that it kills the performance stone dead. I run a modern 1200R Sporty with Stage 1 and Vance & Hines Straightshots; it breathes beautifully right through the range and goes like the proverbial from a shovel,but I am the first to admit that it is offensively loud.
You do make a valid point, in that the difference in pitch often causes some bike exhausts to be more offensive than others. Passionate Harley fan though I am, there is no more beautiful sound to my ears than a well-thrashed Trident (the old type) or better still a 1970's MV four.
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I'm an NHS Audiologist and am interested in this thread from the point of view of the effect's on a biker's hearing. I've not seen too much on this area and need to do a proper literature search but it's been mentioned somewhere in the clinical setting before that bikers (not sure if it was a reference in particular to Police bikers on Motorway patrols) seem to acquire noise induced hearing loss, typically around the mid to high frequencies.
..... Are there any bikers out there that cover a relatively high annual mileage and have noticed a decline in their hearing?
I've found myself thinking about doing some CBT more recently, but am personally not keen on very loud bikes (or loud cars for that matter!). But then at the tender age of 30, I've started wearing ear-plugs to night clubs too; due to the awareness brought about by my line of work.
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Any damage is more likely done by wind noise in the crash helmet. Riding even a very loud bike, the noise of the bike itself tends to be left behind you.
My own bike, so I have been told, was designed to reflect induction, rather than exhaust noise, back at the rider, thus giving the rider the impression of noise but not offending other road users.
Having followed it in my car and heard similar bikes passing I can confirm that this is true.
It hardly makes any noise at all but when you are riding it it sounds like it does.
Hope that makes sense.
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Thanks Madux, certainly I'd have to agree that wind noise within the crash helmet would explain a reputed characteristic mid-high frequency hearing loss. I hadn't thought of that, having not ridden(!)
Thanks again, much appreciated :). Sorry, just realising how geeky I'm sounding in this thread!!
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I'd certainly agree that wind noise will outweigh even the loudest exhausts - loud and high pitched.
Helmet design and fit can make a huge difference to noise, but if I'm out for a longish ride, I shove in the earplugs.
Many/Most? commercial riders (couriers, plod etc) will often wear moulded, in-ear, headphones that provide protection.
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I'm not a biker but I do appreciate the engineering/design that manufacturers put into them.
But I have to say that noise is a problem - but only from the riders who fit racing cans on their sportsbikes and the Harley "baffles removed" brigade, along with the occasional funky moped, which you can put down to youthful ignorance and enthusiasm.
The noise is a problem for people not riding the bikes or ensconced in a helmet perhaps with earplugs.
I live in a rural area which has "biker friendly" roads, and on weekends and some regular summer weeknights, what pleasure and relaxation we should be able to get in the garden/home is effectively lost and ruined by a combination of dozens/hundreds of high revving sports bikes, and single/groups of noisy Harleys that literally shake the windows of the house.
OK, we live on one of these roads, so expect normal traffic noise. But I can assure you that majority of cars and indeed HGVs that pass by during the week and weekend we can cope with. I'm not saying we don't hear them, of course we do. But with bikes, you can hear some of them coming and going from about a mile away at times; the sudden noise boom from others is really quite stessful for humans - and not a lot of good for wildlife either.
Then there are the occasions when phone calls are interupted - inside the house with windows closed - if you are unlucky enough to be on the phone when one or group of racers go by.
And finally, the village church - a mile off the main road - yes, you can hear them from in there too.
I am not "anti bike" etc - it's a free world. But I really can't understand why many, many bikers seem to go out of their way to cause more noise than is necessary (and I suspect legal).
As someone else said, as there is no traffic policing to speak of anymore, then nothing is likley to change, so we just have a little moan and cope.
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..... Are there any bikers out there that cover a relatively high annual mileage and have noticed a decline in their hearing?
I think it would be difficult just to put it down to riding a motorbike. Concerts when younger, working in factory/noisy environments etc... will all add to the overall loss.
As others have mentioned helmet design and wind noise are a bigger problem than the actual bike. That is why I chose the helmet I use (to cut down on wind noise) and always use ear plugs.
I cover about 12,000 miles per annum at the moment by bike.
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